According to The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), an
average of 6,300 hotel and motel fires break out every year. While
experts admit the risk of fire is, indeed, much greater at home,
there is still very good reason to be prepared for a fire while
traveling.

"Usually, a hotel is not a place a guest is very familiar
with," says Julie Reynolds of the NFPA, "so if there is a
fire, it can take you much longer to get out."

To protect yourself, the fire preparation process should begin
when you make your hotel reservation. Be sure to ask what kind of
fire protection equipment the hotel employs. Reynolds says it's
best to secure reservations at establishments with automatic fire
sprinklers in both the guest rooms and corridors, and with smoke
detectors in the rooms.

Upon your arrival, ask the check-in clerk exactly what the fire
alarm sounds like (such as whether it's a voice warning or
siren) so you'll recognize it should you hear it. Once in your
room, review the emergency plan posted on the back of the door
detailing the location of emergency exits. Then, take the time to
explore the two closest exits, counting the number of doors between
you and them in case a fire should impair your view.

In the event of a fire, check your room door to see if it's
warm. If so, experts advise staying put in your room until it's
safe for a rescue. If not, exit the room (remembering to take your
room key with you) and proceed to the closest exit.

If you encounter smoke in the stairwell, use the alternate exit.
If that isn't safe either, return to your room and turn off the
heater or air conditioner, stuff the crack under the front door
with a wet towel, and hang sheets out the window so firefighters
can spot you.

Although it won't be easy, experts say the best advice is to
stay calm during a fire. "Try to avoid panicking," says
Reynolds, "that way, you can take charge and protect
yourself."

No Room At The Inn

Sorry we're booked, may become an all-too-familiar refrain
from hotel reservations clerks in the coming months. With very few
new hotel properties under construction and domestic and
international business travel growing rapidly, travelers can expect
hotel rooms to be hard to come by through the end of the year.
Indeed, according to Coopers & Lybrand LLP, the industry's
occupancy rate is 65.6 percent, just slightly below last year's
high of 65.8 percent.

Obtaining a hotel room in Boston or the Big Apple will probably
be the most difficult for travelers. However, rooms are in short
supply in most major cities around the country, cautions Hanson.
Also keep in mind that the crush is at its worst Monday through
Wednesday.

With many cities running at or near 100 percent occupancy
several nights a week, Hanson says, business travelers should also
expect to "get bowled over with higher rates,"
particularly when making last-minute reservations. On average, room
rates are up 5.7 percent this year.

To get the best price, ask about weekend, group or special
packages. What's more, to make sure you get a room, Hanson
says, be sure to reserve early.

Road Notes

Quikbook, one of the country's leading hotel discount
services, now allows individuals to book accommodations at rates 40
percent to 65 percent below retail via its Web site
(http://www.Quikbook.com). Hotels are available in Atlanta, Boston,
Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco and Washington,
DC.

Hyatt Hotels now offer check-in by telephone. Call (800)
CHECK-IN after 11 a.m. Eastern Standard Time and at least one hour
before arrival, and receive a room number right over the
phone.

Hilton Hotels Corp. and Hilton International Co. recently
launched Hilton HHonors Worldwide, giving members both hotel points
and airline frequent-flier miles for each qualifying stay.
Travelers can earn and redeem HHonors points at more than 400
participating hotels in 50 countries.

If you're looking for someone to take you around town, help
you with errands or just advise you about the best restaurants when
you're traveling on business in the United States, Canada or
Europe, call Elite Concierges (800-ASSISTANT) to be provided with a
personal assistant to help you out on trips.

Want more free SkyMiles? Between now and June 30, travelers who
book a ticket online at Delta's new Web site receive 500 bonus
SkyMiles.

Talk about a window seat! Four of Japan Airlines' 747-400s
are now equipped with a lavatory that is not only one and a half
times larger than a typical in-flight restroom but also has marble
sinks, gold-plated faucets and a window.

Continental Airlines will begin service from New York/New Jersey
to Moscow effective August 30. Daily DC-10 flights will feature
Continental's BusinessFirst service and will be timed to
provide connections at its Newark hub for passengers traveling to
and from cities in North America.--Catharine Brockman
Kuchar

In The Cards

Stressed out by trying to keep track of all your airline
tickets, hotel confirmations and car rental paperwork? American
Express and IBM are testing a "smart" American Express
Corporate Card embedded with a computer chip that promises to do
away with all these hassles.

American Airlines and American Express employees are testing the
cards, which are used to check in for ticketless flights on
American Airlines. Travelers check in by inserting the card into
gate readers installed at 21 major U.S. airports. In the future,
once travelers make electronic ticket bookings online, they will
download the confirmation number to the smart card via a personal
computer with smart card capabilities (or at an airport
self-service kiosk). The two companies also expect to begin testing
the cards with hotels, car rental companies and some merchants (for
electronic cash transactions) by year-end.

"We're trying to make business travelers' lives
easier by putting functions on the [smart card] chip that will cut
down on waiting time and inconveniences," says Melissa
Abernathy of American Express.

Sound great? Well, you'll have to wait until sometime next
year when the companies expect to offer the intelligent technology
to consumers.